


Wrong Number

by OnARomanHoliday



Series: Maze Runner AU oneshots [2]
Category: The Maze Runner (Movies), The Maze Runner Series - All Media Types, The Maze Runner Series - James Dashner
Genre: AU Story, M/M, Mention of Death, Oneshot, alternative universe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-22
Updated: 2018-04-22
Packaged: 2019-04-26 11:49:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,488
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14401548
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OnARomanHoliday/pseuds/OnARomanHoliday
Summary: You mistook my number for a crisis hotline and now I'm worried about you and please don't hang up and talk with me Newt and Minho, sort of just a oneshot





	Wrong Number

**Author's Note:**

> This is based on a prompt from dailyau tumblr  
> This is just a oneshot I was thinking about for a while so here it is.  
> Enjoy

Sundays were supposed to be sacral days. It was supposed to be the day after Saturday night when he could sleep off a party or just stay late and have the time to sleep in. Yet apparently today wouldn’t be that kind of Sunday.

 It took him about a minute to realize that the sound was coming from his house and about another two minutes to recognize what the annoying as hell sound was. They mostly kept the landline because of their grandma these days and ever since she living with them, he completely forgot they had one or how it sounded.

When the annoying sound continued to ring through the house, he realized he must have been by himself at home.

He put on some pants and walked downstairs since it didn’t look like anyone else was going to pick it up. His parent probably left with grandma to go grocery shopping.

‘Hello,’ he said almost carefully not sure who to expect on the other end of the line. It was so early. What was it like 8?

_‘H-hi, uh...hi.’_

Minho blinked confused as some guy replied sounding funny. It was too early on a Sunday to know what was going on and think fast.

‘Yes, hello?’

_‘I don’t even know why I’m calling. I...just...I don’t know what to do anymore. It’s just so messed up right now and I....really missed her,’_ the other man sobbed the last part and Minho realized two things the guy was British and crying.

He swallowed hard holding the line closer to his ear trying to guess who was the mysterious caller. He didn’t know anyone with an accent like that, it also could it be a prank. Who would prank him like this? Not many people even knew his number. It sounded weird. Still, the guy continued to softly cry mumbling, and he couldn’t just hung up on him so he continued to listen to line speechlessly.

_‘She...she’s gone, and my boyfriend he...it’s weird and I don’t know what to do about anything anymore...’_

Minho sat down on the chair next to the phone and waited. It was a moment. He could hear the other boy heavy breathing before he suddenly said, ‘I shouldn’t have called. Sorry.’

‘Uh, no, wait...just keep talking,’ he said before he could stop himself, ‘I...what’s your name?’

There was a sigh, ‘ _Newt.’_

He blinked, ‘Oh...’

_‘It’s a nickname obviously,’_ said the boy almost offended.

‘No, it’s cool.’

Minho made a grimace trying not to sound amused, ‘Okay, Newt....uh, you’re doing great. Just keep talking....please.’

He leaned further into the chair.

_‘Well...my mom...she passed away a couple of months...three months today and it’s....it still hurts like badly. I...uh, it was sudden. An aortic dissection...she was in a car accident a year before that and her blood pressure spiked. She was feeling sick but she just didn’t want to bother anyone so she didn’t say anything,..Uh...’_

Minho brushed the back of his head listening to the British guy’s voice breaking at moments and picturing what he was telling him.

_‘I’m sorry, I don’t even know your name, mate,’_ said the boy on the other end suddenly as he must have calmed himself down.

‘Uh, Minho, and it’s okay. Just keep going, Newt.’

Deep breath and a sigh, _‘It’s just...I still wake up in the morning and there is that second when I think she’s still there... I just forget for a moment or don’t remember. Then I remember and it just sucks so much...It still hurts. She was my mom. She was the best person I knew and she...she was my mom. I can’t describe it, but she was my mom...’_

He gripped the phone tighter. He could hear the pain in his voice. It hurt to listen as well, ‘I’m sorry, man.’

_‘Yeah... ’_

Minho bit the inside of his cheek, ‘Tell me more about her? How was she like? Were you close?’

Another deep breath and sigh, _‘Yeah, she was just...great. The best mom. I know everyone can say that, but...she really was. She was the best. She was my mom.’_

His voice broke again and so did Minho’s heart for the complete stranger.

_‘She would cook and sing songs by the Smiths. She always made weird jokes. Dad jokes if you liked.’_

‘Yeah, my dad does them to. Yesterday he asked me why didn’t the bicycle stand by itself.’

Newt laughed a bit, _‘Okay, why?’_

‘It was too tired.’

It took a moment to Newt actually laughed and Minho never felt so good about telling someone such a lame joke.

_‘She was...she was great, mate._ ’

Minho pressed the phone closer, ‘I believe you.’

There was movement a bit, and he wondered if he didn’t just brush away his tears or something.

It was a moment of quiet and Minho wondered about the whole situation. Some stranger was calling him and talking to him a complete stranger about his life. What was going on? He wished he took his phone from his room. He sort of had an idea.

The guy was calling a stranger and talking about his problems. Could it be that he wanted to call suicide or crisis hotline and just hit the wrong numbers?

‘So uh, Newt,’ he started carefully, ‘How did you ended up with m-our number?’ he asked hoping he sounded confident.

_‘What?’_

Minho closed his eyes feeling his heart speed up. He hold he wouldn’t hung up.

‘It’s just that we are doing this research as well to know how do people find out about us?’ he cursed mentally about how stupid that sounded.

Silence.

Minho was starting to freak out, ‘Are you there?’

_‘Yeah, sorry...well, I found it on this bumper sticker on a car in front of me. I’m sitting on a bench waiting for the next bus.’_

‘Oh,’ he said. He had to be right.

‘Okay, just...okay, sorry about that.’

_‘Are you nervous?’_ asked the boy.

‘No,’ he said too quickly before he brushed his forehead, ‘Okay, yeah, a little bit. I’m just new at this.’

He heard a chuckle on the other end, _‘Okay, new guy, Minho.’_

He nodded to himself grateful that the boy didn’t hang up. If he really thought this was a suicide hotline, he definitely did not want him to hung up, ‘Yeah, sorry, if I’m terrible at this.’

_‘Am I your first time caller?’_ asked Newt and Minho decided to go with the partly truth, ‘Yes. I think you already guessed it.’

A chuckle, _‘Sort of, but...you’re a good listener. Thanks.’_

‘You’re welcome,’ he replied and for a moment he realized it felt good to hear that.

‘So, you also mentioned a boyfriend. What’s the trouble there?’ he asked.

_‘Well, it’s gotten weird over the past few months...mostly because of my mom, and I just...have been having these problems. I just have been in this place of mind...darker and he doesn’t know exactly how to deal with me when I’m like that.’_

‘I’m sorry about that. I guess it’s hard for people to know what to do or say....everyone grieves differently. Everyone feels differently about things so...I can’t speak for him, but maybe he just doesn’t know what to say.’

_‘Yeah, I get that. I wouldn’t know what to say to a stranger either...it’s just...When my mom died everyone came over or texted me that I can talk to them or just hang out if I feel like it. The problem is that at the time I didn’t to hang out with anyone, but then I did, and I couldn’t because when I didn’t answer or reply in a while I just felt like I shouldn’t bother people with it anymore, and they didn’t ask me again. Maybe that’s why I’m talking to a complete stranger on the hotline.’_

‘Yes, but don’t feel bad about that. This is basically why the hotlines exist,’ he said, ‘So talk away.’

A sigh, _‘I just miss her so much...and I miss how it all was before. I wish things were normal, but most of all I wish...she was here. I would give anything for her not be...gone. I would give anything to have this superhero ability to turn back time. To have more time with her.’_

They stayed quiet for a moment before Minho answered, ‘It’s okay, to wish that, you know that right? It’s okay to miss her and how the life used to be. It’s okay to feel whatever you feel and want to or not want to talk. If you want to talk to a friend, I’m sure they will listen to you and if you want to talk to me I will always listen too. It’s all up to you, okay?’

_‘Okay,’_ said the boy quietly, _‘Things are just so bad now. Dad is working overdrive, my sister is in overdrive, and I just act like this...I don’t know. And my boyfriend he’s just not sure what to do about it which I get I’m not sure either. I just I guess, I’m not sure what to do about it all. I just feel like we’re not in the right place anymore. I have been feeling like that for a while...and I also don’t know if it’s because of my mom or maybe something else and if I should just wait or do something about it?’_

‘I don’t know, dude. This should be up to you. Are you happy? I mean I know you are not since your mom passed...but if you think about the things or just try to separate everything that is about your mom and what is just about the two of you....are you happy?’ he asked sincerely.

Another sigh, ‘ _Not right now. I haven’t been for a while.’_

‘I think that is sort of an answer, or not?’ he asked and Newt stayed silence for a moment probably thinking about it as well.

‘Hm...where are you right now? You said you’re waiting for the next bus.’

_‘Yes, I’m waiting for the next bus because my boyfriend and I went to this concert of this lame band he likes, and we fought about why I wasn’t into it and that I shouldn’t have come if I was being so negative all the time. And he was right obviously, but still I had a few drinks...Which wasn’t the best idea since it’s like 1 PM. We shouldn’t have talked while drunk and annoyed. So anyway, I decided to leave so now I’m sitting alone at the bus stop in Liskeard.’_

‘So what are you going to do?’

_‘Go home sober up and call him later to talk. We’re in a small town so we’re bound to talk eventually. Better sooner than later.’_

‘You sure you don’t want to think about it a bit?’ asked Minho.

_‘I’ll see...hey...uh, thanks for listening. It felt good to talk to someone without having to see them or know them. I guess strange talks are a really good thing,’_ he chuckled a bit.

‘Of course, uh, call me anytime. I like talking to you,’ he said before he could stop himself. This was not what he planned to say honestly, but it was truth he had been talking to the boy for twenty minutes or something, and he didn’t mind. He felt good about himself to talk with him.

_‘Yeah, thanks, but I guess I will have to be lucky to get you on the line again if I want to talk to you again.’_

Minho made a grimace, ‘Well...yeah...or you know, I could just give you my private number.’

Don’t ask him what he was doing because honestly he had no idea either. He just knew he didn’t want Newt to stop talking. He felt like the boy needed it more than anything, and felt really good that he was enough for the boy to continue talk.

_‘Oh, are you allowed to give away your private numbers to customers?’_ he asked and Minho froze realizing he was going to have to come clean if he wanted to continue to talk to this guy.

‘Uh, yeah, no, look...please don’t hung up but I’m not really a hotline guy. You must have ring the wrong number, and I really wanted to talk to you so I just went with it,’ he confessed.

There was a moment of silence which felt like the longest one in Minho’s life until he heard a chuckle.

_‘Okay, I wondered if you would admit it. I’m looking at the bumper sticker and I definitely dialled the wrong number.’_

Minho frowned, ‘You could have told me that a while ago, you know.’

_‘Yeah, I could have. But I liked talking to you still. You’re a good stranger to listen, Minho.’_

They both laughed a bit before Minho remembered the previous conversation, ‘So, want me to give you my number just in case.’ _Please_

_‘Yeah, let’s keep in touch. If you’re not doing it out of pity that is.’_

‘No, well, I’m really sorry about your mom and what’s going on with your life now, but it’s not pity. I want to talk to you. If you feel bad about talking about yourself then I could talk about myself next.’

He heard the smile in his voice even if he couldn’t see it, _‘Yeah? Good, I think I would like to get to know you too. Kind of funny how of all the numbers I dialled yours. Where are you even?’_

Minho sighed relieved, ‘New Haven, Connecticut.’

_‘Oh my God, the bill for this will kill me for sure.’_

Minho chuckled, ‘Yeah, so uh maybe call my cell or we can skype or something.’

_‘Okay, thanks, Minho from New Haven.’_

‘You’re welcome Newt from Liskeard.’

_‘I’ll call you in a bit. The bus is here and I need something to write down your number.’_

‘Okay, till later,’ said Minho, and he couldn’t keep the excitement from his voice for some reason. He really didn’t know why, but he wanted to talk to Newt again or listen. He never felt this good about listening to someone before.

_‘Bye for now, mate.’_

He ended the call just as his parents and grandma returned from shopping. He went to the kitchen to helped them unpack.

‘Good morning.’

‘Morning.’

‘Hi.’

‘What’s that?’ asked his grandma as she gave him a suspicious look.

‘What’s what?’ he asked as he unpacked the grocery bag.

‘That goofy smile on your face?’ she asked with a known look. He looked away, ‘I don’t have a goofy smile on my-’

The phone rang and he dropped everything to run to the phone, ‘Hi, Newt.’

His mother blinked, ‘We still use the landline?’


End file.
